FDA Unveils Plan To Prevent Accidental Overdoses
Posted on: Thursday, 5 November 2009, 06:35 CST
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) introduced a new program on Wednesday aiming to prevent millions of accidental drug overdoses caused every year by medication errors, improper use, and various other dangerous issues.
The new plan will involve the FDA working with physicians to identify what kinds of drugs pose the greatest risks to patients, reported the Associated Press.
Safety improvement proposals include measures such as simplifying drug labeling, providing standard dosage cups for cold medicines and mandating risk-management plans from drug manufacturers.
The FDA plans to begin its first initiatives within the next 12 months after holding public meetings to gather comments.
"All participants in the health care community have a role to play in reducing the risks and preventing injuries from medication use," said director of the FDA's drug center Dr. Janet Woodcock.
According to the agency, medication errors are responsible for 4 million Americans being rushed to the emergency room each year and about 117,000 hospitalizations.
This is not the first action taken by federal regulators. They have tried to prevent drug overdoses a number of times before, but without success.
Earlier this year, the FDA sent out letters to the manufacturers of two dozen powerful painkillers, including morphine, codeine and methadone, demanding that they develop plans to cut down on the misuse of their drugs.
However, during Wednesday’s announcement, the FDA claimed that its “Safe Use” initiative will take "a more coordinated, systematic manner, with interventions across all sectors of the medication distribution and use system."
The agency hopes to target issues such as liver damage caused by acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol and other over-the-counter pain relievers. According to federal data, these medications alone cause about 55,000 trips to the emergency room every year.
Other problems they wish to address include preventing operating room fires started by alcohol-based surgical solutions.
"Too many people suffer unnecessary injuries from avoidable medication misuse, errors and other problems. The FDA is launching the Safe Use Initiative to develop targeted solutions for reducing these injuries," FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg said in a statement.
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Source: RedOrbit Staff & Wire Reports
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